UNRWA collapse would doom generation of Palestinian children: Lazzarini

The UNRWA chief warned that if the embattled UN agency for Palestinian refugees were to collapse, it would deprive a generation of children of education, "sowing the seeds for more extremism."

Pointing to a dire funding situation, Philippe Lazzarini warned of "the real risk of the agency collapsing and imploding."

If that were to happen, he told AFP, "we would definitely sacrifice a generation of kids, who would be deprived from proper education."

For more than seven decades, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees has provided essential aid, assistance and services like education and healthcare to Palestinian refugees.
Lazzarini has described the organisation as "a lifeline" for nearly six million Palestinian refugees under its charge, across Gaza, the West Bank, Lebanon, Jordan and Syria.

But UNRWA has long been a lightning rod for harsh Israeli criticism, which ramped up dramatically after Hamas's deadly attack in Israel on October 7, 2023 sparked the devastating war in Gaza.

Israel's allegation early last year that some UNRWA staff took part in that attack spurred a string of nations to at least temporarily halt their backing for the already cash-strapped agency.

Palestinian children get their family's share of an Iftar fast-breaking meal at a free food distribution point. AFP

And earlier this year, Israel opted to sever ties with UNRWA, banning it from operating on Israeli soil.

While it can still operate in Gaza and the West Bank, it has been barred from contact with Israeli officials, making it difficult to coordinate the safe delivery of aid in the Palestinian territories.

Israel has argued that UNRWA can be replaced by other UN agencies or NGOs.

Lazzarini acknowledged earlier this week that if the only objective is to "bring trucks into Gaza" to address the humanitarian crisis caused by the war, others could step in. But he stressed that UNRWA's role was far broader.

"We are primarily providing government-like services," he told AFP. "So I don't see any NGO or UN agencies all of a sudden stepping into the provision of public-like services."

He cautioned that the loss of UNRWA's education services could have particularly dire consequences.

"If you deprive 100,000 girls and boys in Gaza, for example, (of an) education, and if they have no future, and if their school is just despair and living in the rubble, I would say we are just sowing the seeds for more extremism," he warned. "I think this is a recipe for disaster."

Agence France-Presse